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08/07/2000
Paid access archiveA brief look at the stories making headlines in the Russian-language press
Wednesday, August 2 Segodnya Kommersant Segodnya www.segodnya.ru Despite President Vladimir Putin's assurances at his recent meeting with oligarchs that there will be no undoing of privatization, the Kremlin may put forth its own scheme where owners will have to refuse hard currency property and freedom of speech itself will come to naught. The first step in this direction has already been taken, notes the article, citing oligarch Boris Berezovsky's stock of ORT television that the Kremlin is pushing him to quit. Also covered in Kommersant. A presidential draft decree calls for the abolition of the Political Consultative Council, or PCC, which was formed under a 1996 decree by then-President Boris Yeltsin. PCC member Alexei Makarkin describes the agency, and explains why it is not needed today. Also covered in Noviye Izvestia. In an interview, Tatar President Mintimer Shaimiyev comments on the presidential laws on reforming the state power agencies. Also covered in Noviye Izvestia.
Most Read
1.
Russian Billionaire Pays Record $88M for New York Apartment
Monaco-based potash tycoon Dmitry Rybolovlyev has bought the priciest piece of residential real estate in New York City, paying $88 million for a Manhattan penthouse.
2.
Skolkovo's MIT Seeks to Stop Brain Drain
"I'm probably not going to move back for a couple of decades," said Yekaterina Paramonova, a third-year undergraduate majoring in nuclear science and engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, echoing the sentiment of many Russians who have tasted life outside the motherland.
3.
Doubts Nag Prokhorov's Candidacy
"Let's look at the history of human development," he begins. "Somebody always has to be first. That person says, 'We need to develop in this way,' and nobody believes him; they're suspicious of him. Nobody believed Steve Jobs or Bill Gates at first."
4.
Putin Discouraged From Solo Bobsled Ride
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin inspected a bobsledding training course outside Moscow on Thursday, taking a test run as a co-pilot.
5.
In the Hot Seat
In English, I don't have much occasion to use the verb "to seat." In fact, I think the last time I used it was a year or so ago: "Even though we made a reservation, the maitre d' didn't seat us right away."
6.
City Buying Eco-Buses and Cars
More than 2,000 new "environmentally friendly" buses will be employed on the streets of Moscow in the near future.
7.
Q&A: Metro's Jeroen de Groot Feels at Home, Humbly
The parching heat wave of 2010 did a tremendous favor to Germany's Metro Cash & Carry, just as Jeroen de Groot was coming on board to lead the company's Russian operation.
8.
Opposition Rally Barred From Central Square
Organizers of a Feb. 26 opposition rally called "Farewell to Putin's Political Winter" said their application to hold the event on Ploshchad Revolyutsii next to the Kremlin was rejected by City Hall.
9.
Duma Reform Could Reduce Poll Trickery
A bill submitted to the State Duma by President Dmitry Medvedev would ban political parties from putting nationally known figures on regional parliamentary election lists while increasing the number of electoral districts from 80 to 225.
10.
Harsher Charges Reinstated for Martial Arts Champ Accused in Death of Teen
World fighting campion Rasul Mirzayev's saga continued Thursday when charges of manslaughter in the death 19-year-old Ivan Agafonov were returned to the more serious crime of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
1.
Putin Plan Targets Population Drop
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin unveiled his plan on social policy Monday, focusing on how Russia will boost its dwindling population amid a demographic crisis that threatens to turn the country into "void space."
2.
Journalist Booted After Visa Violation
A prominent French writer and journalist has been kicked out of the country on the grounds that she did not have the right to research a book while on a business visa.
3.
Putin Chasing Imaginary American Ghosts
Here we go again — another round of anti-Americanism from the Kremlin and state-controlled media. Blaming outside forces for Russia's woes has a long history in the country. The closer we get to the March 4 presidential election, the more intense the anti-American hysteria becomes.
4.
General Says Russia Could Use Nuclear Weapons to Keep Country Intact
Russia's armed forces would be within their full rights to use nuclear weapons if any threats to the integrity of the country arise, Russian General Staff head Nikolay Makarov said Wednesday.
5.
Moscow Is Unlovable and Unlivable
Today's Moscow is unlovable and unlivable, overdeveloped, underserved by public utilities and choked by traffic. You can't drive, you can't breathe, there is no place to park and walking is impossible thanks to giant SUVs lining the sidewalks.
6.
Report: United Russia Might Be Dismantled
United Russia, the country's dominant political party for more than a decade, might be radically reformed or even dissolved in the coming months.
7.
HIV Prevention Falls Short as Funding Ends
Katya moved to Moscow seven years ago and three years later — when she was pregnant with her first child — discovered she was HIV-positive.
8.
Officer on Atomic Submarine Commits Suicide
A senior lieutenant serving on the Gepard atomic submarine, part of the Northern Fleet, hanged himself in his cabin.
9.
From South Ossetia to War With Georgia
While the Russian authorities are, for the time being, using kid gloves to deal with the opposition at home, they have not shown the same constraint in South Ossetia.
10.
Start of Stadium Demolition Draws Outcry
Architectural preservation group Arkhnadzor said Monday that demolition at the constructivist-era Dynamo football stadium as a part of ongoing building work was against the law.
1.
Election Webcam Installation Begins
In a city that was once the cradle of Russian democracy, an unprecedented new campaign kicked off over the weekend to install web cameras in every polling station around the country in an effort to prevent voting fraud.
2.
Feminist Punk Band Become Unlikely Putin Foil
Pussy Riot, a feminist punk collective from Moscow, creates protest through its dissident songs and unsanctioned performances, including a brief unauthorized concert in late January on Red Square.
3.
Why Putin Will Never, Ever Give Up Power
If Putin gave up power at any age, he and dozens of his friends and colleagues who have become millionaires and billionaires over the past 10 years through their Kremlin-connected businesses could face serious corruption charges. This is why the best, and perhaps only, way for Putin to preserve immunity is to stay in power until death.
4.
Why Putin Is Mad at Me
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin got very angry last Wednesday when he met with the editors-in-chief of Russia's top media outlets.
5.
Russia Seeks Proof U.S. Zapped Failed Probe
A Russian state commission investigating the crash of the Fobos-Grunt Mars probe will conduct tests to see whether U.S. radar played a role in the spacecraft's failure.
6.
Putin Stand-In Faces Zhirinovsky Fire
In Tuesday's second presidential debate of the campaign season, firebrand Vladimir Zhirinovsky harangued Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's levelheaded proxy over her patron's refusal to debate and alleged desire to rule for life.
7.
Putin Plan Targets Population Drop
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin unveiled his plan on social policy Monday, focusing on how Russia will boost its dwindling population amid a demographic crisis that threatens to turn the country into "void space."
8.
Recruiters Say Mother Russia Seeking Talent
Demographics make it a candidate’s market, but foreigners have to offer something unique to find their place.
9.
Pro-Putin Song Is Web Hit
A schmaltzy music video hailing Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as Russia's savior became a hit on the Russian Internet on Tuesday, with many bloggers and YouTube users poking fun at the song's hyperbolic lyrics.
10.
From Protest to Nausea
The history of successive authoritarian regimes in Russia reveals a recurring pattern: They do not die from external blows or domestic insurgencies.
